Public Transit in the GTA, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

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Sometimes it takes a while for things to catch on. This may be true for the Nova LFS series bus fleet. When bus #8400 rolled out for training in early June 2015, it wasn’t the first Nova LFS non-articulated series bus to have operated on TTC property. For the TTC, the LFS series was seventeen years in the making.

In the early-to-mid 1990s, the TTC experimented with a number of different bus manufacturers to replace the venerable General Motors “New Looks”. They turned to a number of different companies, including Flyer, Nova and Orion Bus Industries. By the late 1990s, however, Orion Bus Industries began to dominate the TTC’s procurement. It helped that Orion Bus Industries was originally named Ontario Bus Industries. The TTC had been given a lot of incentive to buy local, which they did for the next fifteen years. But other bus companies continued to refine their low floor bus designs, Nova Bus among them. Their new Low Floor Series bus debuted in the late 1990s, and the TTC obtained a demonstration vehicle to test it out.

Demonstrator #1001

The TTC’s first Nova LFS arrived on commission property in May 1998. Nova Bus LFS #1001 was a demonstration vehicle had been acquired by the TTC to test Nova’s new low floor design as part of a settlement with NovaBus after cancelling half of a 100-bus order with Nova and placing an order with New Flyer to acquire buses more quickly.

The bus operated out of Eglinton garage, in service as an extra on that garage’s routes. The test was successful enough that the TTC decided to make low-floor buses the mainstay of the fleet. Unfortunately for NovaBus, the TTC decided that the main provider of low-floor buses should be Orion. However, the TTC would return to NovaBus for a low-floor purchase, buying 26 low-floor articulated buses in October 2012.

NovaBus #1001 was decommissioned in April 2000 and sold to Barrie Transit for $306,000 on November 15, 2000. It left TTC property soon thereafter under its own power and drove to a plant Mississauga to be repainted in the new owner’s colours.

Wheelbase: 20’5”, requires adjustment in positioning for turns. Much shorter then standard.

New LFS Arrivals in 2015

NovaBus’s reprieve started in 2012, when Orion Bus Industries began to shut down production. The company stopped taking new orders on April 25, 2012. By March 2013, the company announced that all of its assets and remaining orders had been sold off to Flyer. At the time, the TTC had settled on NovaBus to supply its 2013 order of low floor articulated buses, 153 of which were operating by the end of 2014.

In April 2014, as the TTC considered another purchase of non-articulated 40-foot buses, they were impressed enough by NovaBus’s handling of the articulated bus order that they ordered 55 of the non-articulated LFS series (numbered from #8400-#8454) at a cost of $33,298,072.50. The first bus arrived on TTC property in early June 2015. The batch was originally intended for the SCARBOROUGH RT replacement buses (43 for replacement and 12 for growth). When the BLOOR-DANFORTH line extension was approved by the City Council in late 2013, the replacement buses are no longer necessary. Realizing the detonation and retirement of its remaining lift-equipped Orion V and Nova RTS buses, it was decided to continue with the purchase of the 55 buses allowing the commission’s bus fleet to become entirely low-floor wheelchair accessible.

The 2015 version of the Nova LFS is three generations removed from TTC bus #1001, the LFS demonstrator vehicle in 1998. The fourth generation LFS boasts a new rear design and 250-280 horsepower diesel engines compliant with 2013 EPA standards.

In February 2015, TTC staff urged commissioners to expand the contract, citing an equipment shortage threatening service levels. Commissioners agreed to expand the order by another 50 vehicles, which would arrive by January 29, 2016. As of September 2015, only 50 buses are in revenue service and based out of Arrow Road garage.

Specifications For the Nova LFS Bus (Fourth Generation)

Fleet Numbers: 8400-8504

Length: 40’

Width: 102’

Height: 124’

Engine: Cummins ISL9 8.9L, 250 or 280 hp

Trans: ZF “EcoLife” 6AP1400B

Nova LFS Image Archive

TTC NovaBUS LFS #1001 has been assigned on rt.34 Eglinton East on June 30, 1999. She is seen here on Eglinton Ave. East and Don Mills Rd. Photo by Felix Tse.

TTC Nova LFS demonstrator bus #1001 was under charter with the Toronto Transportation Society on Saturday, July 22, 2000 when it was captured by Rob Hutchinson at Queens Quay and Stadium Road. In honour of the last day of 121 FRONT-ESPLANADE service, a FRONT-ESPLANADE exposure has been put up.

Nova 1001 seen here at Warden and Eglinton westbound towards Eglinton Subway Station, in service on 34 EGLINTON EAST. Photo by Rob Hutchinson.

TTC Nova LFS prototype 1001, seen here at Kennedy and Eglinton in service on 34 EGLINTON EAST. Photo by Brad O'Brien.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8139, in the TTC's fresh Flexity livery, crosses Bay Street eastbound on Adelaide at the tail end of a morning Downtown Express run. This photo was taken on June 22, 2017 by James Bow.

TTC Novabus LFS #8400, the first of the 2015 batch of Nova low floor (non-articulated) buses, is seen here on a training run at Downsview Station. These buses would start to enter service in mid June on the 60 STEELES WEST route. This photo was taken on June 5, 2015 by Lex Reid

TTC Nova LFS series bus #8402 lays over at Humberwood loop, in service on 36 FINCH WEST on June 21, 2015. Photo by William Busuttil.

TTC 2015 Novabus LFS bus #8402 is seen here boarding passengers at York University, getting ready for another race back to Finch Station on Route 60C STEELES WEST. Photo taken by Lex Reid on Monday June 29th, 2015.

TTC NovaBus LFS #8402 is seen here at Kennedy station, operating on SCARBOROUGH RT shuttle service on September 12, 2015. Photo by Justin Ha.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8403 lays over at Finch station on July 11, 2015. Photo by Flame Cube.

TTC 2015 Novabus LFS 8407 on a rainy day at Queens Plate and Hwy 27 on route 191 HIGHWAY 27 ROCKET, heading to Steeles. Taken by Lex Reid on Saturday June 27th, 2015.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8408 lays over at Wilson station on March 28, 2016, the first day of service on the 186 WILSON ROCKET. Photo by Marcello Tomas (TTC9442)

TTC Nova LFS bus #8418 northbound on Kipling at Birmingham in 188 KIPLING SOUTH ROCKET service on July 7, 2017. Photo by Edward Brain.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8421 turns from Adelaide onto Jarvis in 145 DOWNTOWN-HUMBER BAY EXPRESS service on the afternoon of June 22, 2017. Photo by James Bow.

In this photograph, taken by Roman Fomin on September 19, 2015 in Duncan Shops, brand-new Nova Bus LFS 8450 has never been in service to date.

The interior of Nova bus LFS 8450: front view...

...and rear view.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8463 lays over at Humber College Bus Terminal, in service on the 186 WILSON ROCKET. This photo was taken on March 28, 2016, the first day of service on the new route. Photo by Jeffrey Kay.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8487 is seen at Wilson station while servicing the 186 WILSON ROCKET. Photo taken by Flame Cube on Wednesday, March 30, 2016.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8494 is seen at Wilson Station (Upper Level) while servicing the new 118 THISTLE DOWN route. Photo taken by Flame Cube on Wednesday, March 30, 2016.

TTC NovaBus LFS lays over at Finch West station in service on the 36 FINCH WEST route on the afternoon of December 18, 2017. Photo by James Bow.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8513 pulls out of Finch station in 36 Finch West service in this March 2016 shot by Mark David.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8525 lays over at Finch station in Steeles West service in this March 2016 shot by Mark David.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8528 works a subway shuttle service northbound on Yonge Street in this March 2016 shot by Mark David.

TTC NovaBus LFS #8528 makes the last 106 YORK UNIVERSITY run into York University Commons ahead of the opening of the SPADINA subway extension into Vaughan, in the early morning hours of December 17, 2017. Photo by John Marballa.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8541 pulls into Pioneer Village station in service on the 35 JANE route. This photo was taken on the afternoon of December 18, 2017 by James Bow.

TTC NovaBus LFS #8564 prepares to lay over briefly at Jane station in 35 JANE service on the afternoon of March 29, 2017.

TTC NovaBus LFS #8571 lays over at Broadview subway station in 87 COSBURN service. This photograph was taken by Marcus Danchuk on May 14, 2017.

TTC Nova LFS bus #8589 heads into Downsview station, in service on 106 YORK UNIVERSITY on January 19, 2017. Photo by James Bow.

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